It was
with good intentions that the Carolina Panthers running back took to
the pocket during a touch football game at his youth football camp
Thursday in his hometown of Lacey, Wash.

Four possessions
later he had thrown three interceptions to a team coached -- fittingly
-- by Buffalo free safety Jairus Byrd, Stewart's former Oregon
teammate.

But whether Stewart was making errant passes, faking
out 9-year olds or urging players to work hard, he did it all with the
smile of a child at play among children who reminded him of himself
when he was young.

In what camp organizers called rare,
Stewart held his first football camp free of charge to about 180 kids
ages 7 to 14 in what he hopes will become a tradition that will last
long after he's "dead and gone."

"For them to be on the field
with NFL players and meet them is incredible," Hal Bowes, Thurston
County Youth Football League coach said. "Jonathan played youth
football here and we're able to tell the kids, look where he's gone and
it shows that hard work can pay off."

Rare generosity

Stewart no longer lives
in Lacey. He and his mother, Lora Faison, live in separate homes in
North Carolina. But that doesn't prevent him from returning to Lacey to
reconnect with his roots.

"Home is a feeling, not an address," family friend Cecil Daniels said.

View full sizeAaron Fentress/The OregonianJonathan Stewart runs for yardage during a touch football game at his youth football camp in Lacey, Wash., on Thursday. Stewart is wearing a t-shirt on his head to protect his scalp from the sun.

The
camp participants came from the local YMCA, Boys and Girls Club and the
New Life Baptist Church that Stewart attended. First come, first
served. Sign up. No fee.

Stewart's generosity is uncommon,
according to camp director Rod Huber, head football coach at College of
Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati.

Huber, who organizes similar
events on behalf of ProCamps Worldwide for professional athletes, said
athletes often receive as much as $20,000 in appearance fees and camps
charge participants in order to make a profit.

Not Stewart.
Huber said the former first-round pick waived his fee, found sponsors
on his own and then picked up the rest of the tab himself -- including
paying about a dozen coaches -- to make the camp free.

"That is big because some of these kids might not be able to be here if it wasn't for that and that's big for us," Bowes said.

Said Huber: "Stewart is truly one of a kind. I've been doing this for years and have never seen anything like what he does."

Stewart,
who in 2007 signed a $14 million contract with Carolina, provided gifts
that included Nike leather footballs, autographed photos, post-camp
pizza and prizes for top camp performers. Thursday night he paid for
campers to attend a Tacoma Rainers baseball game.

View full sizeAaron Fentress/The OregonianPittsburgh quarterback Dennis Dixon throws a pass during a touch football game at former Oregon teammate Jonathan Stewart's youth football camp Thursday in Lacey, Wash.

Stewart's
philosophy is simple: "For me, why make somebody pay to get better at
something or to be inspired. That's what this is all about. I'm not in
it to make any money, especially in my hometown."

Stewart said
camps in the Lacey area involving professional athletes didn't exist
while he was growing up. Faison, who raised two boys as a single
mother, remembers struggling to find money to send her boys to football
camps.

"As a mom you worry about the cost of it and how you're
going to get them there," she said. "Nothing is really ever free when
it comes to camps. I don't recall anything ever being free. With God's
blessing I managed to find a way and he was able to get to those camps.
So it means a lot for him to be able to give back to kids that are
like him."

Stewart, who credits his faith and humble
beginnings for his humility, said: "I'm just looking at it from the
perspective of if I was a child and if there was a pro football player
here I would like to be able to workout with him and chill and learn."

Huber marveled at the number of professional players coaching at the
camp. Similar events, he said, typically involve maybe one additional professional player. In
addition to Byrd, former Oregon
teammates, Pittsburgh quarterback Dennis Dixon and Carolina tight end
Dante Rosario also appeared. Carolina running back DeAngleo Williams coached on Wednesday.

"That just shows what kind of credibility Jonathan has with his teammates," Huber said.

The camaraderie between fellow former Ducks is genuine. When Byrd was asked about sacrificing his time to attend the camp, he hesitated to answer while watching Stewart approach. When Stewart got to within earshot, Byrd said loudly, “well first of all, I hate him. His camp sucks. I will not come back to it next year. And to any child that wants to come to his camp – don’t come to it!”

Byrd then offered a serious answer to the question: “This is great. Hopefully I can get to the point where I can offer a camp like this.”

Byrd and Stewart hope to collaborate on a project called Byrd House, which would involve building homes for homeless in various cities.

“I’m looking up to him,” Byrd said. “I’m trying to learn from him and hopefully we can team up on some things. Anything I can do to help I'll always be there for him."

Stewart appeared at Rosario's camp in McMinnville this weekend.

Cleats and beats

Also working at the camp was Carolina wide receiver Kenny Moore, one of Stewart’s best friends on the Panthers. He has witnessed Strewart’s transformation into a more outgoing person.

Stewart is often shy and reserved in public. Always humble. Never assuming. To his friends, however, he is a prankster with a deep, intellectual side that shines through when offering advice to friends or reflecting on life.

“Once you get to know him he opens up to you and he’s like a completely different guy,” Moore said.

Kevin Young, former Timberline coach, said he’s notices the changes in Stewart.

“I think he’s must more comfortable now interacting and socializing with a bigger group,” Young said. "But he’s always been the same person.”

Stewart's persona manifests itself in his music, a passion that has taken on a life of its own. He dreams of becoming a music producer and can often be found creating music at his home.

“Hopefully I’ll be able to keep it smooth and get better at it,” he said.Moore is already a fan of Stewar'ts music, which can be heard on his myspace page.

“It’s funny because when I’m in the car with him I don’t like listening to the radio," Moore said. "I just like listening to his beats. He’s a very talented guy.”

But Stewart won’t be laying down any vocal tracks.

“I don’t sing,” Stewart said with a laugh.

What he does do is punish defenses.

Dynamic duo

The
5-foot-10, 235-pound Stewart was drafted in 2007 as a power compliment
to Williams' jitterbug style. Both have split carries with great
effectiveness.

View full sizeAP PhotoCarolina running back Jonathan Stewart set a franchise record with 206 yards rushing Sunday at the New York Giants.

The combo became the first set of teammates to each rush for over 1,100 yards since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger.

Stewart has voiced his desire to become a featured back. But he's never complained and he and Williams are friends.

"I
think that is what makes them great, they're constantly competing with
each other," Moore said. "But I don't really see an issue with that. I
think they both get an ample amount of carries."

Displaying selfishness is not part of Stewart’s message to kids. His camp preached teamwork and dedication. During a speech at the camp, Stewart told the youth that the camp was more about lessons for life and not about football.

“Football is preparation for life,” he said.

Johanna Atualevao sent her two sons, Xavier, 12 and Zavion, 9, to the camp. Both boys said they had a good time learning from NFL players and viewed Stewart as one of them.

“This was great for him to do this and give a great opportunity to kids,” Atualevao said.

At the end of
the camp, Bowes presented Stewart with a replica of his Timberline High
School jersey that was a couple of sizes too small. Stewart squeezed it
on much to the delight of the campers sitting around him and the
onlookers in the stands.

The moment both signified how far Stewart has come while still remaining rooted in this community.

"Hopefully he gets to see that we really do appreciate him," said Kevin Young, former Timberline coach. "'Cause we do."